A Hazard of New Fortunes, Part Fourth

have a preliminary little dinner, where we can talk the thing up first-half a dozen of us; and he wants to give us the dinner at his house. Well, that's n

and I suggested Kendricks: he's such a nice little chap; and the old man himself brought up the idea of Linda

to dinner?"

liment for what he done for the country. There won't be any trouble about it. Yo

ndau ever had on a dress-coat in his life, and I don

as old Pan-Electric himself, when it comes to a dress-coat," said Fulkerso

u, and his wish to honor him does him credit; but to have Lindau to dinner isn't the way. At the best, the old fellow would be very unhappy in such a house; he would have a bad conscience; and I should be sorry to have him feel that he'd been recreant to his 'brincibles'; they're about all he's got, and whatev

any danger," he added, buoyantly. "Anyhow, you spoke too late, as the Irishman said to the chicken when

other commen

go off all right. I'll engage to make it,

s was just what his wife had not learned; and she poured out so much astonishment at what Ful

life and death; and, if it were, I

ped now. But I am surpr

his moments of bein

defence of her favorite. "Well, I'

seems your infallible Fulkerson overruled him. Their p

th a mocking air of having expected it when she said: "Well, then, if Mr. Fulkerson says he will see that it all comes out right, I suppos

k the step, or at least suggested it. I'm happy

moment. Then she said: "Oh, pshaw! You k

you, Isabel," said her husband, with affe

w York that could bring together, in honor of itself, a fraternity and equality crank like poor old Lindau, and a belated sociological crank like Woodburn, and a truculent speculator like old Dryfoos, and a humanitarian dreamer like young Dryfoos, and a sentimentalist like me, and a nondescript like Beaton, and a pure advertising essence like Fulkerson, and a society spirit

was too good a fellow not to laugh at another man's joke, but he laughed a little ruefully, and he seemed worn

ulkerson persuaded him that this would not do; he must have it from a caterer. Then Dryfoos wanted his maids to wait at table, but Fulkerson convinced him that this would be incongruous at a man's dinner. It was decided that the dinner should be sent in from Frescobaldi's, and Dryfoos went with Fulkerson to discuss it with the caterer. He insisted upon having everything explained to him, and the reason for having it, and not something else in its place; and he treated Fulkerson and Frescobaldi as if they were

oint of eruption with his misgivings and suspicions at the first interview, he had gone to him a second time alone, and told him not to let the money stand between him and anything he would like to do. In the absence of Frescobaldi's fellow-conspirator he restored himself in the caterer's esteem by adding whatever he suggested; and Fulkerson, after trembling for the old man's niggardliness, was now afraid of a fantastic profusion in the feast. Dryfoos had reduced the scale of the banquet as regarded the number of guests, but a confusing remembrance of what Fulkerson had wished to do remained with him in part, and up to the day of the dinner he dropped in at Frescobaldi's and ordered more dishes and more of them. He impressed the Italian as an American original of a novel kind; and wh

motives of his own, rather strained a point in suggesting the colonel to Dryfoos as a fit subject for invitation. There had been only one of the colonel's articles printed as yet, and though it had made a sensation in its way, and started the talk about that number, still it did not fairly constitute him a member of the staff, or even entitle him to recognition as a regular contributor. Fulkerson felt so sure of pleasing hi

down; and he hoped"-here Fulkerson felt the necessity of inventing a little-"that you would excuse any want of ceremony; it's to be such an informal affair, anyway; we're all

ut with unabated state, "coming from you. But in these matter

son, feeling that he had been delic

ou have done me the honor to print my papah, but this is a question of passing the bounds of a purely

r broke in. "If you bah you

decay of our nefarious commercialism, it behooves a gentleman to be scrupulous that the hospitality offered him is not the profusion of a thief with his booty. I don't

's hard, and he'd push an advantage, but I don't believe he would take an unfair one. He's speculated and made money every time, but I never heard of his wrecking a r

over till morning?

aid Fulkerson, eagerly. "I do

much oblahged, Mr. Fulkerson. Ah jost know it's all you' doing, and it will give papa

ng at breakfast and apologized for taking time to think the invitation over before he accepted. 'You understand,' he says, 'that if it had been to the table of some friend not so prosperous as Mr. Dryfoos-your friend Mr. March, for instance-it would have been sufficient to know tha

ry good; and he seems to have had a good deal of confidence in y

f thing about the colonel. I told him to take time to think

ive any reason he had for accepting. But

rch!" said